Three Easley police officers are being credited for saving Bratcher's life.

Officer Bob Felton went to assist in the pursuit, but heard dispatchers say they'd lost contact with Bratcher.

"Something told me to slow down. Had I sped by, I may not have seen that faint glow down in the hole," said Felton. "Something brought me to (Bratcher) and I leave it to God. He took care of us."

Felton grabbed a fire extinguisher and tried to put the flames out with no luck.

"(Bratcher's) yelling, 'I can't breathe, I can't breathe.' So, I told him to cover his face, and took the fire extinguisher, and broke the window, and pulled his head and shoulders out of the window so he could breathe," said Felton.

"Went over there to the other side of the car, and we just started pulling. Just started pulling as hard as I could, trying to get him out," said Benjamin. "I was scared that I was going to watch him die in the car. I remember I felt a little bit helpless because we were trying our best, and our best wasn't good enough."

"(Bratcher's) yelling, 'Get me out! I'm on fire!' We tried to put out the fire. It was getting worse and worse as we're sitting there," said Green. "He's yelling don't let me die! I'm on fire!"

Green said Bratcher's foot was stuck and that's why it was hard to pull the trooper out.

"I looked down and I could see the trooper's foot was in an orange glow of fire. I then reached in, and grabbed his pant leg with my two arms, and pulled as hard as I could," said Green.

Somehow the foot dislodged, and the officers pulled Bratcher to safety.

"Less than 30 seconds later, the car was fully engulfed. Where we were standing was completely engulfed," said Benjamin.

"I just stayed there, and talked to (Bratcher) and he was saying, 'It hurts. It hurts.' And, I was saying, 'But, you're alive. You're alive,'" said Felton. "This is something I will remember. Pass it onto my children. I guess you call it a legacy. It's the career we chose and what we do to protect each other."

"You go in together. You go home together every single night," said Green.

The Aftermath

Bratcher has two broken legs, burns to his feet, a broken wrist and possible broken ribs. Late Monday afternoon, Bratcher was out of surgery and was in the intensive care unit at Greenville Memorial Hospital.

Gaulden said the motorcycle driver did not stop.

Bratcher has been a trooper since September 2006.

The Pickens County Sheriff's Office is handling the investigation.

The cruiser is a total loss, but investigators did recover the dash camera recording system.

Morgan said it could take several days for technicians to determine if the digital video can be saved.

Reward Offered

The only description of the motorcyclist is that he was white and had a goatee. He was wearing a dark-colored helmet and he was riding a dark-colored sport bike with a dual headlight.

Lance Cpl. Bill Rhyne said Crimestoppers is offering a cash reward for any information leading to the arrest of the motorcyclist who Bratcher was pursuing.